Village Convention: Contextual Art in Rural Environmentsartist 35 Artistsyear 2005language(s) Englishlocation BRITAIN, Ditchling, East Sussexregion 3 South (South)index no. 05.3.08media PDF-printabout the media PDF-print in English (report made by General Public Agency).

about the project “Village Convention: Contextual Arts in Rural Environments” was a three-day international convention/workshop focusing on the particular issues related to contextual art practice and production in rural environments. It addressed issues around the vitality and sustainability of village life in the context of modern pressures on the community, and to strengthen the debate about how contemporary art can contribute to village life.

The aim of the convention was to support and create an international professional network amongst practitioners addressing the rural as a context for contemporary art production. The convention provided an opportunity for artists to share information, develop national and European networks, to discuss issues arising from personal experiences of rural art production and to set this in a European context. The Village Convention was initiated and organized by myvillages.org (including Doris Koch) and General Public Agency with Ditchling Museum.

about artist and participants More than 35 artists, curators and organisations connected to rural projects came together in the village school and Ditchling Museum. At a Sunday afternoon public event documentation on several projects was presented. The participants stayed in local bed & breakfasts and were given a guided village tour by Ditchling Museum’s artist-in-residence Jo Roberts.

Ditchling Museum is housed in a former village school and has been founded in 1984. The Museum shows a collection of arts and crafts work, including a significant Eric Gill collection, Shoji Hamada, and Hilary Pepler. It informs on former village life and has recently started to commission contemporary artists for site-specific projects in relation to the history and location of the village.

General Public Agency is a creative consultancy providing services which include strategic brief-setting, public realm strategies, cultural policies and programmes, and design studies. General Public Agency’s approach is multidisciplinary, encompassing architecture, artistic practice, community planning, environmental and creative regeneration, design, and issues of active citizenship. General Public Agency curates its own programme of action research projects as well as responding to client briefs.

Doris Koch supported myvillages.org in the contextualisation and organisation of the Village Convention. She is a Berlin-based artist who has been working extensively in rural contexts.